Cover photo: Affordable Housing units in Kenya. Image: Files, via Pulse Kenya. Campus Pulse does not own this image; it is used here with attribution to its original publisher.

If you graduated in 2020 or later and you are still waiting for "experience" to magically appear on your CV, this is the closest thing to a direct line: 6,000 internship slots, one programme, one deadline.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) has announced 6,000 internship vacancies under the Affordable Housing Programme, Cohort 2, through the State Department for Housing and Urban Development, under the Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development. The vacancies were announced on Tuesday, 20 October 2026, according to Y News and Pulse Kenya's reporting of the notice.

Applications close on Monday, 9 November 2026, and must be submitted through the PSC's online recruitment portals: www.publicservice.go.ke or www.psckjobs.go.ke.

What the internship actually is

Successful applicants will undertake a 12-month internship, which is non-renewable. The programme is meant to give graduates practical workplace experience, sharpen technical skills, and prepare them to support housing projects across the country — while also exposing them to real work environments, mentorship and project-site work under the Affordable Housing Programme.

Interns who successfully complete the programme will receive certificates from the State Department for Housing and Urban Development, according to Pulse Kenya's reporting. Interns will receive a stipend at a rate determined by the State Department — the rate itself was not stated in the reporting used for this draft, so Campus Pulse is not quoting a monthly figure. Do not trust any post that quotes a stipend amount without an official source.

Who can apply

  • A degree or diploma from a recognised university or institution, depending on the specific role.
  • Graduated in 2020 or later.
  • Computer proficiency.
  • Must not have previously benefited from a similar internship programme.

Those are the headline eligibility rules as reported. The full, role-by-role requirements are in the official PSC vacancy notice — and that notice, not a summary post, is what you should apply against.

Where the 6,000 slots sit — with one honest flag

Pulse Kenya reported the vacancies cover 28 professional areas, and listed, among others:

  • Construction management: 500
  • Architecture: 475
  • Mechanical engineering: 350
  • Quantity surveying: 300
  • Structural engineering: 300
  • Health and safety: 300
  • Civil engineering: 275
  • Electrical engineering: 250
  • Land surveying and geospatial work: 230
  • Structural assistants: 225
  • Urban and regional planning: 200
  • Architectural assistants: 330
  • Quantity surveying assistants: 300
  • Realtors: 330
  • Building inspectors: 290
  • Civil engineering inspectors: 300
  • Property managers: 250
  • Landscape architecture: 250
  • Social development: 115
  • Data science and/or artificial intelligence: 50
  • Gender and development studies: 50
  • Communication and branding: 20

Other reporting of the same notice gave a different field count — TUKO reported 17 professional fields, while Pulse and GeeRadio reported 28 areas. Campus Pulse is flagging that discrepancy openly rather than picking a number and pretending the sources agree. The total — 6,000 slots — is consistent across reporting; the field breakdown should be confirmed against the official PSC advert before you decide which category to apply under.

Other fields listed in reporting include electrical and mechanical engineering, valuation, environmental practice, interior design, plumbing and electrical inspection, and building inspection. In other words: this is not only an engineers' list. Planners, surveyors, valuers, communicators, data graduates and social development graduates all have a lane — check the official notice for yours.

How to apply without getting scammed

  1. Go to the official PSC portals only: www.publicservice.go.ke or www.psckjobs.go.ke.
  2. Find the Affordable Housing Programme Cohort 2 advert and read the requirements for your specific field.
  3. Apply before 9 November 2026. Do not wait for the last day — portals slow down, documents go missing, and "the site was down" is not an extension.
  4. Pay nobody. A legitimate PSC internship application does not require a facilitation fee, a WhatsApp "agent", or a payment to unlock a slot. Anyone asking for money for this advert is running a scam.

What we could not verify

The stipend rate, the exact field-by-field breakdown (sources disagree on 28 areas vs 17 fields), and the deployment locations for successful interns were not confirmed in a single official source in the reporting used for this draft. Those details must be taken from the official PSC vacancy notice itself.

Sources